I hold with those who favor fire
by Scutie-Naos
Summary: One knows they're hopelessly obsessed with PJO/HoO when they listen to the song I See Fire by Ed Sheeran and apply it to Camp Half Blood.


**A/N: So I'm just scrolling through my acres of old random stories I would never consider publishing and I find this. A songfic. I enjoy writing songfics, cheesy as they are. I'd almost forgotten about this one. Apparently, my friend considers this trash worthy of being on the internet. So here you are, enjoy my strange collage of overly dramatic/angsty/cheesy thoughts. *I tried writing it so if you're listening to the song and reading it will almost match up. Don't think I succeeded. But listen to the song as you read anyway.***

* * *

...Uselessness, I've decided, is the worst feeling in the world. And all I can hear is that little girl's song, over and over...

-o-

 _Oh, misty eye of the mountain below_

 _Keep careful watch of my brothers' souls_

 _And should the sky be filled with fire and smoke_

 _Keep watching over Durin's sons_

-o-

I wonder if I am dead. I should be able to know, I am the Ghost King. I wander the banks of the Styx in a daze, as I have many times before. There were so many deaths, I couldn't tell one from the other. I don't know who I should be mourning. So I mourn them all.

-o-

 _If this is to end in fire_

 _Then we should all burn together_

 _Watch the flames climb high into the night_

-o-

It was just like last time, at the machine shop. The flames ate everything, and though I used all my strength, I couldn't break the barriers separating me from them. And they burned. They burned, and so did I. For the first time, I felt the searing pain that is the result of fire's venom. And now, I only have one hand. It doesn't do much, this one hand. It sits there, limp. It doesn't fiddle with gears or grommets, or construct ingenious inventions to get us out of this hellish situation. For the first time, it's just another hand.

-o-

 _Calling out father oh_

 _Stand by and we will_

 _Watch the flames burn auburn on_

 _The mountain side_

-o-

He didn't answer.

I asked for the power to quench those flames, but he didn't answer.

Maybe it wasn't him. None of our powers seemed to be working. But I, the son of Poseidon, the hero, should have been able to pull through. It was my responsibility to save the day. But I failed. That camp meant more to me than almost anything, and now it's a pile of ashes.

Father, please, give me strength...

-o-

 _And if we should die tonight_

 _Then we should all die together_

 _Raise a glass of wine for the last time_

-o-

Everything burned, they would say later.

If everything burned, what chance does one little piece of firewood have?

None at all.

-o-

 _Calling out father oh_

 _Prepare as we will_

 _Watch the flames burn auburn on_

 _The mountain side_

 _Desolation comes upon the sky_

-o-

Lightning cannot fight fire.

Wind will only make things worse, by giving it air to breath.

Praying that they are alright, doesn't do much either.

If she is still alive, then Father, I will know, I am truly covered by your grace...

(Heh. Puns. Bad puns help fix everything.)

-o-

 _Now I see fire_

 _Inside the mountain_

 _I see fire_

 _Burning the trees_

 _And I see fire_

 _Hollowing souls_

 _I see fire_

 _Blood in the breeze_

 _And I hope that you remember me_

-o-

Fire cannot be reasoned with. I learned that the hard way. Sometimes the only logical thing to do is run. I ran through the woods, and it followed. I ran over the hill, and it followed. I watched it eat and consume everything. That's one good thing about fire, it doesn't discriminate. It ate everything from the youngest campers to the oldest trees, and sometimes it was so red, I thought surely it must be dyed that color from the blood it was boiling. I ran until I could run no more, and then I was eaten too.

Don't forget your promise Seaweed brain.

-o-

 _Oh, should my people fall_

 _Then surely I'll do the same_

 _Confined in mountain halls_

 _We got too close to the flame_

-o-

On the 31rst of August, the Twelfth Legion Fulminata of Rome fell.

Well, burned would be an more accurate word. It burned. Rome hasn't known such a catastrophe since Pompey, and likely will never know such a catastrophe again. There isn't enough of us left to have a major catastrophe. If we were to die, it would only be sweeping up the remnants of what The Fire has started.

The biggest loss I feel, right at this moment, is Frank Zhang. The others at least might be alive. Perhaps. There is a chance. But Frank died giving his life to save his fellow soldiers, just as his mother did. And now I have no one to help me lead the people Rome but myself, yet again.

If I fail, then the legacy of Rome will be lost forever.

-o-

 _Calling out father oh_

 _Hold fast and we will_

 _Watch the flames burn auburn on_

 _The mountain side_

 _Desolation comes upon the sky_

-o-

There was no choice. I had to take this path. If I hadn't the flames would have consumed me.

Now, wandering the Labyrinth, I almost wished I stayed back. Then at least I could have tried to save Frank…

But I was a coward, and I ran. And now his death is my fault. And now I'm going to die down here, alone in these winding half-grown tunnels I cannot navigate.

"Father, I know you're supposed to ignore me, but, if I don't get some help... then I guess I'll be coming home soon."

-o-

 _Now I see fire_

 _Inside the mountain_

 _I see fire_

 _Burning the trees_

 _I see fire_

 _Hollowing souls_

 _I see fire_

 _Blood in the breeze_

 _And I hope that you remember me_

-o-

"Hey Pipes."

"Hey Nico. Did they get you too?"

"I honestly can't tell."

"You can't? Why don't you go ask your dad?"

"Because I'm scared of the answer. Not to if I'm dead or not, I don't much mind that… But then I'd have to ask who else didn't make it. That's the answer I'm scared of."

"...I can understand that. Do me a favor, don't tell me who made it if you do find out."

"Don't you want to know if Jason's alive?"

"No. I'll wait. He'll come to me eventually. Everyone will."

-o-

 _And if the night is burning_

 _I will cover my eyes_

 _For if the dark returns_

 _Then my brothers will die_

 _And as the sky is falling down_

 _It crashed into this lonely town_

 _And with that shadow upon the ground_

 _I hear my people screaming out_

-o-

I ran. That's what I always end up doing when it comes to a fight. Running. _Useless._

-o-

 _Now I see fire_

 _Inside the mountains_

Leo made it. Mostly. His left hand was so burned and mutilated, it had to be cut off. I tried to cheer him up about how he can make himself a new hand with a laser pointer and a flamethrower and a screwdriver in each finger. But he just looked at me with dead eyes, unmoving. I gave up. I figured if I couldn't get a reaction out of him with the prospect of something as cool as a flamethrower hand, I'll have to try again later.

 _I see fire_

 _Burning the trees_

Calipso is missing. No one knows if she's still alive, or is her body is a pile of ash. Festus is gone too. That could be a good thing. Or maybe not.

 _I see fire_

 _Hollowing souls_

Frank is dead. He had to choose between saving his firewood, or a group of his soldiers huddled under a building whose roof was about to cave in. The fireproof pouch didn't seem to be having any effect. So he turned into a dragon, and then he turned to ash.

 _I see fire_

 _Blood in the breeze_

We found Annabeth's body. Or, what was left of it…

 _I see fire (oh you know I saw a city burning out) (fire)_

Percy blames himself. For both Annabeth's death, and not being able to save the camp. I don't think anyone could have saved it. Those flames were powered by some kind of magic, it's the only explanation. But I honestly think the only thing stopping him from hurling himself off a cliff is the monster attacks. They're swarming what's left of us, and if it wasn't for Percy, Clarisse, and a few other powerful demigods, we'd be dead already.

 _And I see fire (feel the heat upon my skin, yeah) (fire)_

Jason, Piper, Hazel and Nico are MIA. That doesn't mean they're dead. Not necessarily. In fact, Nico probably tried to do some shadow travel thing and ended up in China by mistake. And now he's there, having a nice long nap.

 _And I see fire (uh-uh-uh-uh) (fire)_

Sweet dreams Angel. I hope that you dream forever, and you'll never have to wake up. Yes, I really do hope that. Because living in a dreamworld would be much better than having to deal with this hellish reality. Even though, gods know we need you. Now more than ever. _I_ need you.

 _And I see fire burn auburn on the mountain side_

-o-

Before this whole thing, the number of people I have failed to heal was forty two. _Forty two_. That's forty two people too many. Now, that number is over ninety six. I failed, at the one thing I'm good for, more than ninety six times.

We had to burn the bodies. Kind of ironic, and a lot of campers wanted to bury them instead. But there simply wasn't enough time or resources. So they burned. Nico wasn't here to do the burial rights.

Chiron is missing. The whole camp feels his absence. He's been a sturdy presence for demigods to rely on for centuries, and now he's gone. It's kind of unbelievable really. We all know he would do everything in his power to get back to us. So that means he's probably dead. Which means that he is no longer needed to train heros, which means that heros are no longer needed. Which means that the era of the gods could be ending.

The little girl stumbled out of the flames, saying something about a pretty lady with a persuasive voice telling her to jump. So she did. And now she's alive, but the pretty lady didn't make it. Now she won't stop singing this song about fire...

And so I sit here, waiting for the sunrise. Because with sunrise, a new day comes. And that means you've survived the day before, which means you might survive today, or maybe even tomorrow. With each sunrise, there is hope.

Dad's been around for millenia, and he's never once failed us. The sun has never once failed to rise. It's a fundamental law of the universe, the sun always comes up at the start of a new day. So he couldn't possibly fail us now, right?

...Right?

* * *

 **Yes. I just totally SLAUGHTERED ALL of your OTPs.**

 **...WTF is wrong with me?**

 **Feel free to call me out on what a terrible person I am in the review box.**


End file.
